In ancient Greece, women rarely held positions of power. Moreover, in many Greek city-states, women were considered second-class citizens. They were not allowed to participate in political life, own land or inherit property.

But there was a woman who managed to become one of the most powerful people in ancient Greece: the Oracle of Delphi.

View from Delphi, by Claude Lorrain. Photo: Pinterest

When the Oracle spoke, all the men in Greece remained silent, and for a moment this woman had the power to change the course of history in one word.

According to historian Michael Scott , traditions regarding the Delphi Oracle have continued for over 1,000 years.

During this period, the famous Oracle and its temples were in the center of the ancient world, and were a very important economic, religious and political center.

The strongest woman in ancient Greece had a hard word to say

Modern photograph of the ruins of the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. Photo: Wikimedia

People from all over the Mediterranean and beyond came to the Oracle for guidance and advice. Legend has it that Delphi, the residence of the Oracle, was the scene of an important event in Greek mythology . Here, the child god Apollo killed a huge snake with a single arrow.

When the beast fell to the ground, it created a huge abyss, from which smoke and poisonous gases came out as the snake's corpse decomposed. This gas gave the Oracle its legendary power.

By inhaling the fumes, the Oracle could act as a link between the world of the gods and the world of men. When in a trance, the most powerful woman in ancient Greece received divine powers and communicated to people the messages of the gods and vice versa.

Photo: Go Nomad

According to Scott, the earliest account of the Oracle dates from the middle of the sixth century BC and can be found in a Homeric hymn, but it is possible that the tradition of the Oracle dates from a much earlier period.

Named "Pythia", after the corpse of the mythical serpent that provided access to the gods, the Oracle of Delphi was always a woman.

Initially, young virgins were chosen to act as a means of divine communication. But when they began to give birth to amorous intentions on the part of men, they were replaced by older women.

They were required to give up their worldly lives and dedicate themselves entirely to the temple and the gods.

The oracle was consulted once a month, on the seventh day of each of the warmest nine months of the year. Apollo was thought to have left the altar in the winter, so he could not communicate with the gods during this time.

Pythia fasted and was ritually bathed before the consultation. Then he sat down on a three-legged chair, holding laurel leaves and a bowl of spring water.

Apollo sitting with a pound in his hands. Porphyry and marble, 2nd century. Farnese Collection, Naples, Italy. Photo: Pinterest

Then, inhaling the smoke coming out of the earth , the strongest woman in ancient Greece went into a trance and began to make prophecies.

In many cases, her words could not be heard or made no sense, in which case specially chosen "consultants" interpreted the prophecies of the one who had come to the altar. Archaeologists now believe that the vapors described by the legends associated with Delphi were not entirely mythological.

The oracle of Delphi and the gases that give you the power to see into the future

According to the New York Times, the excavations showed that in the ground under the Delphi shrine there were cracks through which gases such as methane, ethane and ethylene could have come out, due to which the Oracle began to hallucinate.

It is not known for sure how strong these women were. Perhaps they were under the strict control of the temple priests, who interpreted their visions as they wished, not allowing the Oracle to comment on the content of his visions.

The Priestess of Delphi (1891) by John Collier, depicts Pythia sitting on a tripod, while the vapors rise from a crack in the ground below her. Photo: Pinterest

But many historians believe that Pythia had considerable political and social power.

For hundreds of years, no major political decision was made in Greece without first consulting the Oracle, which means that these women had a great opportunity to dictate the future of the world in which they lived.